President starts a week trip abroad

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is travelling to Liberia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Eygpt from January 30 to February 2. (file photo)

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is travelling to Liberia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Eygpt from January 30 to February 2. President and the first lady Ani Yudhoyono will start the trip to Monrovia, Liberia, to co-chair High Level Panel of Eminent Persons on Post-2015 Development Agenda with British Prime Minister David Cameron and Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.

"This is the third meeting since New York on September 25, 2012 and London on November 1, 2012. The next meeting will be held in Indonesia in March," Presidential Staff on International Relations, Teuku Faizasyah, said on Wednesday.

SBY is also scheduled to hold bilateral meeting with President Sirleaf to increase cooperation on trade, investment and technical cooperation. Diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Liberia have been officially begun in 1965, but their relations actually started on 1955 through Asia Africa Conference in Bandung.

From Monrovia, SBY and his entourage will visit Abuja, Nigeria, to meet with President of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. They will discuss on trade and investment, politics and security, along with social culture cooperation.

Similar with relations with Liberia, Indonesia started the relations officially with Nigeria on 1965. Indonesian investment in Nigeria is quite good. Many Indonesian products are widely used in Nigeria.

Then from Nigeria, SBY will fly to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to attend business meeting between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia. The meeting is expected to reactivate Indonesia-Saudi Business Council (ISBC) in order to reach the target through trade promotion, trade mission, and business matching.

During his visit to Saudi Arabia, SBY will perform umrah, which is pilgrimage to Mecca that can be undertaken at any time of the year. SBY will end his trip to Cairo, Egypt, to attend the 12th Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) themed 'The Muslim World: New Challenges and Expanding Opportunities'.